The Daily Trump 2.0: A Year of Unconstrained Power
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Jan 20, 2026 
Maggie Haberman, a seasoned White House correspondent, joins fellow New York Times reporters Jonathan Swan and Charlie Savage to dissect the transformation in governance under Trump's second term. They delve into Trump's personalization of power and targeting of enemies, his radical legacy projects, and the potential for retaliatory governance. They examine Trump's unconventional military actions abroad and the legal implications of his decisions, while discussing the fragility of institutional checks against his expansive executive power and the rising domestic tensions.
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Extravagant Consolidation Of Executive Power
- Trump's second term centers on extravagant, often unprecedented uses of executive power across agencies and policy areas.
- He treats checks as illegitimate and seeks to bulldoze them to concentrate authority in the presidency.
Personalization And Retribution Drive Policy
- Trump personalizes the presidency, seeking compensation and retribution for perceived past wrongs and targeting specific firms and lawyers.
- That personalization creates self-reinforcing cycles where targets comply or pay to avoid retaliation and to curry favor.
Legacy Building Through Corporate Extraction
- Trump extracts money and monuments from corporate America to build a personalized legacy in Washington D.C.
- Corporations donate out of fear of federal retribution, reinforcing his power and public imprint.